Against the Odds
by Agentweapon Proelium-Tempus
Summary: The Insurrection killed millions, but Humanity recovered. The Human-Flood War killed billions, but Humanity prevailed. Humanity again stands alone in the face of both persistent and threatening rivals. They are outnumbered and outgunned and are against tenacious opposition, but then again, Humanity has always had the ability for surviving the impossible. Heavy AU
1. I

_**Enjoy!**_

Against the Odds

 _The Insurrection killed millions, but Humanity recovered. The Human-Flood War killed billions, but Humanity prevailed. Humanity again stands alone in the face of both persistent and threatening rivals. They are outnumbered and outgunned and are against tenacious opposition, but then again, Humanity has always had the ability for surviving the impossible._

 _LOCATION - Sydney, Australia Earth, Sol System. December 11th, 2652 Military Calendar_

Hood Memorial Park stood for all to see. For all to both mourn and honor those that gave their lives to ensure that the Insurrection didn't bring an end to the UEG. For all to grieve and recognize the heroes that sacrificed their lives to give Humanity a chance to survive the Human-Flood War.

The Memorial depicted a bronze sculpture of a group of men and women from all branches of the military defending a banner of the UEG and UNSC from an ill-equipped group of humans and the grotesque forms of the Flood . The marines represented by three regular grunts and a female Orbital Drop Shock Trooper opening fire on the group of both humans and Flood while a stoic Spartan supersoldier was frozen in mid-melee combat with Combat forms and last but not least the navy represented by Fleet Admiral Lord Terrence Hood, the man who led Humanity during those trying times, in the middle of the group wielding a Magnum of old.

By the droves civilians and military personnel alike flocked towards the capital of the UEG to commemorate the fallen of the Great War the ended exactly a hundred years ago. The UEG had declared the day a state of mourning since it had been a century.

There were many people of prominent standing attending as well, military officers wore their dress blues to honor those that had fallen. Politicians had suits and dresses that were tailored just for this event to also pay their respects.

An intercom announcement indicated that a speech was about to be given by the current UEG president, William J. Melina. Many people began a steady walk towards the ceremonial grounds in order to witness what was no doubt a historical event.

A white stage that was presented as both powerful military figures and prominent political heads took their seats. Surrounding the stage were ODSTs in full battle regalia with their weapons holstered and stowed away but, standing in a rest position, ready to be drawn to combat any threats in a moments noticed. People began settling down as an older gentleman with graying hair that was neatly combed and a fine black suit took to the podium. His face was without blemish but lacked the suppleness of youth. His eyes usually showed the signs of stress that was the usual for someone of his position but right now they looked as if a great burden had been lifted.

President Melina waited as camera drones stopped and hovered. He didn't need to wait for the crowd to quiet as they patiently waited for him to address them. He cleared his throat and began. "Welcome citizens of the UEG, those that are both here in person or are viewing this honorable ceremony from home." He paused for a second before beginning again. "As we all can remember, from either personal experience or stories passed on, a little over a hundred and fifty years ago the Insurrection began. Millions of families torn apart with the rise of rebellion. In 2524, the United Nations Space Command was making leaps and bounds defeating the rebels while the UEG was finishing revising a new draft of a charter that embodied all of Earth's colonies and their interests creating the foundation for a new United Earth Government that you see here today." Throughout all of UEG space, every single person was glued to their screens and grasped onto every word that was said.

"In 2525, the Insurrection had all but dissolved into dust. A mere whisper of what happened but Humanity would always remember what almost drove us apart into senseless anarchy. For a moment, the newly made UEG, done away with the Colonial Administration that was polluted with corruption, enjoyed a sense of peace. But that sense was shattered as a more virulent and hostile foe emerged from the void of space. The Flood." Everyone felt a chill run up their spine at the mention of the foul green Parasite.

"Harvest, Ground Zero for the Great War, was battled over for five years as the brave UNSC military fought for every inch of UEG soil on the garden world." He took a breath. "But we were driven back. The never ending horde of Parasites that infected every single world that they took. Billions were being slaughtered and after twenty eight years of a fighting retreat, of constant vigilance and security measures being placed, Earth, our homeworld was found."

"For the first and only time in history, we fled. We scrounged up what meager ships we had and left through the Mombasa Portal to a safe haven."

"And in the year 2552, with the cunning and strength of our remaining military forces, we had found our salvation. With a single fell swing of the sword, the Flood was no longer attacking Earth. In six years we rid them from all our planets, every asteroid and every single rock that floated in our space. The Flood were wiped off the map and we returned."

"Then for a hundred years, we rebuilt our cities...our worlds and expanded. Our way of life improved. Our military grew stronger. Our technological prowess continued unimpeded and new innovations contributed to everyone's benefit. But today we honor those that paid the ultimate sacrifice and even today we still root out Flood infestations on every world we encounter." He paused once again. "However they would want us to continue the legacy and not let their deaths be in vain."

"Never again will we be at the mercy of an outside force!" There was a few shouts of approval. "Never again will we flee in the face of overwhelming odds!" There were more shouts of approval. "And never again will we be shattered and splintered for we stand united!" He shouted into the microphone and the crowd roared their approval. Many of the officers and officials behind him also stood up and began clapping. He nodded and went to his designated seat as Fleet Admiral Thomas Lasky took the podium.

 _LOCATION - UEG Colony - Shanxi, December 11th, 2652_

Captain Irdinna Aimes, a woman that appeared to be in her early thirties with a fit figure and her shoulder length brown hair in a ponytail and onyx colored irises, looked on her wall of commendations in her quarters and reminisced on the Flood outbreak that got her this posting.

What was supposed to be a simple patrol turned into organized chaos when a distress call about a Flood outbreak. To put it simply, a textbook containment occurred with minimal UNSC casualties. By the time an actual containment fleet arrived, most major Flood concentrations had been destroyed with precision airstrikes and orbital bombardment.

Now instead of a _Dominion-Class_ Light Destroyer and two _Hood-Class_ Heavy Frigates, she commanded a five kilometer long _Preston-Class_ Heavy Cruiser, _The Howling Wind._ She remembered the first time she laid eyes on the ship and how she admired the honeycomb superstructure it shared with its predecessors. Also under her command were several _Zodiac-Class_ Light Frigates, which were about five hundred meters in length and were mostly used for supportive roles, while their heavier comrades, the _Hood-Class_ being at about six hundred meters in length, were mostly used in offensive roles.

She sighed. It wasn't much of a posting but it came with the promotion and the only real excitement came from the alien object that was frozen in one of the moons that was orbiting a gas giant.

However, the pay was good so the only thing she was griping about was the lack of action but given that the UEG was currently enjoying a long-awaited peace and the last major Flood outbreak was at a discovered shield world thousands of light years away, but even that was about seventy five years ago, she really had nothing to complain about.

"Captain, we have a situation." The shipboard AI, Charlie, stated, distracting her from her thoughts. "The alien artefact is reacting to the scientists presence."

"How so?" She further questioned. "Is it hostile?"

"From what we've gathered no but all of the research ships have disappeared. I'm currently running simulations on everything and so far the best explanation I have is that they have been displaced."

She gathered her thoughts quickly. "Bring the fleet to readiness level 3 and alert HIGHCOM and General Williams to have the garrison on alert as well." She quickly said as she made her way out of her quarters and to the bridge.

As soon as she entered the bridge a resounding "Officer on Deck!" by the bridge security hit her ears. She quickly ordered everyone to work as she went to the battle-map, which projected the system they were in. Charlie appeared on the map as well sporting his lab coat with a collared shirt and tan pants underneath. "When did they disappear?"

"I alerted you the second we lost contact with them." He said as he made the map zoom in on their last known location. Which was a massive structure silver structure surrounded by dozens of smaller ice chunks and decently sized asteroids that were the remains of a moon that orbited the gas giant in the system. Since the object was the literal core of the moon, no one had suspected anything to be there until ten years later, when the colony was fully underway, a mining company had decided to set up a base on there to harvest helium-3 from the gas giant and minerals from the moon. When the deeper scans penetrated the moon the object was discovered. From there the UNSC defense force took over.

"Looks like a tuning-fork." Aimes said once again. "Definitely not Forerunner."

"Of course. But energy output is off the scale," He said.

Aimes nodded. "Yes, but the teams are not here." She turned to the comms officer. "Tell the _Redemption at Dusk_ and the _Locust_ to investigate but stay at a safe distance from the fork."

"Yes, ma'am." He responded. A few moments later on the display, two of the ten frigates peeled off from the defensive cluster and headed towards the artefact.

"Ma'am, transmission from General Williams."

"Patch it through."

In a second the hologram of a middle-aged man with short black hair and in the BDU of the Army appeared on the battle map."Captain Aimes, my men are ready. We've begun to deploy in and around the city and have AA batteries up and running. I am also sending a two platoons to secure the spaceport as well as the orbital elevator. I can almost guarantee that whatever comes won't be landing in the city. I have also issued a mandatory evacuation to the emergency bunkers. I have also deployed our contingent of armor and aircraft. A wing of _Gladius_ are on standby to launch and we've have now secured the entire city. It'd be nice to have a few extra hands though."

"We'll deploy what we can spare. It's not much but any help is enough." He nodded in response.

"Send what you can to the defensive cluster in Imes. They are short-handed. " He paused before saying. " Wish you the best of luck, Captain." And with that the General saluted and his hologram fizzled out.

The mood turned grim. No one wanted to fight especially against the unknown. But if push comes to shove, then they would kick.

"Hey, at least help is on the way." An officer straight out of the academy said, referring to the message they sent and also trying to lighten the mood.

The Captain offered a smile to the morale booster albeit a little hesitantly. In the Academy, the simulations always depicted the fight against anyone with either an even force or heavily outnumbered, to prep just in case a situation like it happened. Never did the officers ever have overwhelming force on their side. But even then, she knew the ships and the tactics the Insurrectionists liked to use. She always had prior knowledge on the enemy and this time she wouldn't be afforded that luxury.

"Contact!" Charlie shouted, snapping her from her thoughts. "It's one of the research teams!" On the battle map, a small corvette sized ship appeared near the device. Though, from the readouts they were getting, it was heavily damaged. The two frigates that were moved over oriented their prows to it.

"Any transmissions?" Captain Aimee asked.

"None, they are just sitting there. It looks like their comms may be damaged." Charlie said observantly. Suddenly, dozens more, unknown, ships jumped in behind it all around the _tuning fork object._ The smallest being about a large corvette size while the largest being a kilometer long.

Immediately, the nearest unknowns opened fire on the already wounded defense ship outright destroying it. The captain of the defense fleet quickly sprung into action. "Have the _Dusk_ and _Locust_ perform emergency slipspace procedures and get them back here! Unlock _Gemini_ missile pods A though F and get us between them and the elevator!" She shouted. In response the ship lurched forward as the engines kicked in. "Prep the MACs and energy projectors and get me firing solutions on those ships! Notify High Command!"

"We're being jammed!" The comms officer shouted in response as organized chaos ensued.

"Didn't expect this posting to go like this." The previously jovial officer muttered. _You and me both._ Aimee thought to herself. "Charlie get me numbers!"

"102 very light frigate analogues! 52 heavy frigate analogues and two destroyer analogues!"

"Oh my god..." She muttered.

 _LOCATION - Batarian Dreadnought, Torfan's Talon, CE 2180 (UNSC Calendar December 11th, 2652)_

Admiral Udasin Dapporok sat leisurely in the chair at the bridge. He viewed the battle map from the comfort of it and watched as the Hegemony funded 'pirate' fleet prepared to activate Relay 314.

Normally, this would be considered illegal by Council law but considering they were 'pirates' Council law didn't technically apply to them. The fleet funded by the Batarian Hegemony would make headway into new space and hopefully find more planets to settle but what was more attractive to the Hegemony was the possibility of a fledgling race to 'annex' or rather enslave.

The fleet was merely an insurance that a race like the Ranchi didn't appear. If there was, the fleet would stamp out the nuisance from the comfort of orbit.

The Admiral was chosen for this by the Minister of himself to lead this expedition and it also helped to have a number of blackmailing and the lining of pockets to move things along in his favor. Either outcome of the mission would be appealing to him as it would allow him to curry favor with the other more elitist Admirals in the Batarian Hegemony and hopefully garner enough support to become the Director of Information. Merely a shipment of fresh slaves to anyone that stood in his way would help.

"Admiral, the relay is coming online. We are not the ones that started it." An officer stated from a nearby console. This statement brought him from his thoughts. _Now if the slimy Salarian bastards are watching us they will know that we didn't violate Council law! This mission just keeps getting better!_

"Several frigate sized vessels have came through."

"Disable them quickly and board them!" He barked out. Immediately, several of the nearest Batarian frigates opened fire and outright destroyed most of them with only one surviving. Quickly, the remaining ship turned and left through the relay once again. "Damn fools! All ships forward!" He resounded.

He knew they were most were just pirates but he was used to the military discipline that usually accompanied a fleet of this magnitude. But since he was commanding an armada of pirates he couldn't expect that of them.

In a few moments, the bridge filled with light as the fleet moved through the relay. The Admiral spared one look at the battle map and bared his mouth into a smile. _Like I said, this mission just keeps getting better!_

 _LOCATION - Reach Fleet Command Military Complex, Reach, Epsilon Eridani System; December 11th, 2652_

In a chamber beneath a mile of rock, a six inches of reliable titanium battle plate, and a layer of experimental hard-light shielding, a meeting of twelve individuals either present in person or in hologram form sat at a horseshoe shaped table. All were dressed in some form of ceremonial uniform ranging from ONI's preferred bland black BDUs and lab coats to the ornate and highly decorated uniforms of the Navy.

President William Melina was the first to speak, he was present via hologram at the HIGHCOM Facility in Sydney. "What is this about? Right now the UEG is celebrating a hundred years of unperturbed peace and a military meeting is taking precedence over that."

Admiral Serin Osman responded in cold and calculated tone, in her black uniform that represented her as the head of the Office of Naval Intelligence. "Right now is not the time for securing a second election, Mr. President." That earned a glare from the politician but had quickly quieted him. "You are only here due to policy and right now we may have a hostile First Contact on our hands."

That garnered everyone present in the room attention. "What do you mean First Contact?" The Admiral internally sighed, the entire Security Council already knew what was going on they were having this meeting to decide a course of action.

"I mean exactly what I said. Exactly 25 hours ago, a mining company discovered an alien artefact above the colony world of Shanxi, our furthest and most recent colony. I dispatched several research teams to investigate as soon as it was reported. They arrived and activated the structure." She said to the President. "From the Flash FTL message, 156 hostile alien ships appeared opened fire, killed and destroyed the research crews and vessels. We lost contact soon after and are now deciding a course of action."

Fleet Admiral Lasky interjected and his tone brooked no argument from no one. "The 21st Fleet above Reach is combat-ready and awaiting further orders. Though since we do have a hostile alien force to contend with I suggest a full-scale mobilization and an immediate counterattack. We have to be swift and precise if we want to win."

The other heads of their respective branches voiced their agreement. "Immediately following the commemoration of our victory in the Great War, we seek to start a new one?" The president exclaimed. "The public will be outraged."

"What choice do we have?" Osman responded, tone unchanged. "Let them rampage across, UNSC space uncontested?"

The president was at a loss of words. He shook his head after moment and sighed in resignation as he realized he was caught between a rock and a hard place. "Do what you must." And with that his hologram fizzled out.

"Never liked that man. Worries too much about his reputation rather than what is going on." The Air Force General, Henry Yolt said.

"Peace makes you soft." Lasky stated in reply. "And sadly we have too much of it. Not many experienced commanders are left since they retired. We are going to need all the help we can get."

 _LOCATION - Classified_

Within a heavily defended ONI facility, behind a company of battle-hardened ODSTs and a pair of _Aegis_ Main Battle Tanks, electric chain linked fence, six inch titanium ship grade armor and state-of-the-art defense turrets and behind a labyrinth of security checkpoints and vault doors that have been graded to stop a nuclear explosion, Doctor Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III received an alert on her personal data-pad that she kept on her person at all times.

 _The order came in. Wake them up._

"It's about time." She muttered to herself and in a rare moment she allowed herself a smile.

 _ **!**_

 _ **New concept. Credit goes too gaara king of the sand for providing it!**_

 _ **Questions? Comments? Concerns? PM or Review!  
One thing to say, the Covenant do not exist here.**_

 _ **Until Next Time!**_


	2. II

_**Enjoy!**_

Dr. Catherine Halsey stood in an expanse along with a group of doctors and medics that were waiting in anticipation, in probably one of the most heavily defended facilities in the known galaxy.

Not only was it headquarters of ONI Section III but also the amount of sensitive information and material contained there made it imperative that it was defended. It even had its own attendant battle group should the planet come under attack, it was under orders that it was to not assist the other defenders but to evacuate the facility before engaging enemy forces.

Having thirty Spartan-II commandos in cyrostasis, waiting to be called upon by Humanity in times of need, tended to have that effect.

Every single occupant in the room were in awe as they were about to be a part of history. Only one other time, seventy five years ago, were the legendary Spartans awakened when there was a chance that Earth would be under attack by the Flood again. Now, they really were the stuff of legend as most of the UEG populace believed the Spartans to have died. Only a select few knew that they still lived, those that defended this facility and staffed it and also the Security Council minus the President of the UEG.

The Spartans had their eyes closed and donned a special bodysuit made for cyrostasis as well as for their armor. On the top of each of their pods, above the safety glass that separated them and the outside world was a plaque that had each Spartan's serial number on it.

Halsey paused while she approached each of the pods by herself putting a hand on the glass of each one as if touching their faces. She recited each of their names in a motherly and comforting whisper as she passed them _"Kelly, Fred, Jorge, Linda, Adriana, Aaron , John..."_

She finished and paused at the last pod. John's pod. She would oversee his awakening personally.

"Wake them up." She ordered. There was no hesitation on the doctors part only excitement. They quickly sorted themselves into pairs and began defrosting the pods.

One by one, each of the pods clicked and hissed open as if a chorus of snakes were present and a thick, cold mist gathered at the feet of the room. One by one, giants stepped out of their cold tombs and stood in the land of the living once more.

Halsey was ecstatic to see that they weren't reacting violently or even reacting at all to the bronchial surfactant.

 _That means the formula for it had worked._ Halsey thought to herself. She had worked hard on and studied all the aspects and effects of cryo-sleep. She devised a solution with the new-type of fluid. One that would exponentially increase the chances of survival in long-term stasis. It was only used by the Spartans though since cryo-sleep was out of date with the new slipspace speeds and precision.

Instead, they all stood stoic and silent and responded appropriately to whenever a doctor asked something of them to make sure they all hadn't had any lasting effects of the stasis.

After a few moments, the pod in front of Halsey clicked open and mist began to seep out. The pod was fully opened when a man about six foot 10 in his body suit with his strong features remaining impassive. Halsey nodded and cleared his evaluation quickly.

They had received a psychological evaluation before they were put into cryo-sleep and they, of course, had all passed.

"Spartans!" She announced. Immediately, all the genetically-enhanced soldiers stood at attention while the doctors stood off to the side. They were done with their evaluation. "After you receive your armor and weapons, you will head to the auditorium where you will be briefed on the situation." She said and she gestured for them to exit.

In perfect unison, the Spartans pivoted on their heel and left through the set of doors that went towards the armory.

-()-

As was custom, or rather self-volunteering from John, the famed Spartan donned the new MJOLNIR first. They all watched with impassiveness as the bulky but streamlined armor was carefully but quickly bolted into place on the super soldier. It looked like the MJOLNIR Mark VI but more streamlined and bulky.

He nodded to the other Spartans and they snapped off a perfect salute before they each went to their own personalized armor. Each armor was custom-fitted and made to suit each Spartan's specialties. For example, in Kelly's case her armor was, compared to all the other exoskeletons, lighter and more maneuverable than the others while in Jorge's case his armor looked like it just got beefier and even, given the right circumstances, could withstand a direct hit from an _Aegis_ Main Battle Tank. However, slim those chances may be, a Spartan is ready to counter any situation.

John's armor however, lacked any sort of customization rather going for the more vanilla feel of the armor making him easily distinguishable. This was in part to boost morale as he had been essential in Section II's propaganda campaign, the other part was because he was an all-rounder and while the Spartans could and would respond to any given situation with the upmost effectiveness and brutality that it usually didn't make a difference, if a Spartan was deployed to where they specialized in the effect would be doubly so.

Not many changes were made to the design of the armor rather the technology reaped the benefits of being updated such as the shields, armor-plating and the circuits within the system and numerous customization options for the wearers. The Mark X MJOLNIR exoskeleton is the most advanced power suit to date and only a Spartan-II can wear one without being killed from how intense the speed is.

While everyone was being fitted out, John walked down the aisle and inspected each and every one of _his_ Spartans as their armor was bolted into place and their helmets sealed and pressurized, each visor polarized to the iconic hexagonal, reflective gold visors.

As if it was choreographed by a screenwriter, each Spartan finished as he walked by and followed John out to the armory where they would also receive their customized weapons. Linda and Kelly were on either side of him while Fred was directly behind him with all the other Spartans following closely in formation. Their heavy footfalls resounding as they made their way past the awestricken technicians and doctors.

After a few moments of comforting silence and walking through a massive bulkhead door and filed into two rows of thirteen with Blue Team in the front and John leading them. They would be the first to retrieve their weapons. All of them picking up their preferred weapons from the long-range sniper rifle to the more close-up shotgun.

Picking up his standard armament of the standard issue automatic rifle, sidearm, ammunition and grenade, John's visor quickly scanned the weapon he was holding and gave him the specifications on the weapon, the MA5 series staying true, in its design while also still being a relevant weapon due to the many refits and tuning to be a modern tool of destruction.

At a 120 centimeters in length due to the extended barrel, it's capable of breezing through a standard magazine of forty bullets in just six seconds at fully automatic. His however looked to be more of a special operations weapon due to the blue conduit, with flaps that would cover it, on both sides of the weapon, the specification read that it used plasma lances as munitions and power cells to power said beams. The specification also read that the reflective coating on the titanium plated weapons would deter sensors making it ideal for stealth applications.

He assumed all the custom weapons utilized plasma as the main munitions if all the pulsating blue conduits running through the weapons were any indication.

Since Blue Team had retrieved their weapons, the first row of Spartans stepped forward in unison to gather theirs. John watched as Jorge picked up a massive HMG, that looked ideal for a static defense, and Aaron, the leader of Red Team, help Jorge lock a massive armored power cell onto his back while two technicians also helped connect the HMG to the cell.

When the 30 Spartans finished gathering their gear, they look like they could take on any type of army, in any kind of environment, in any style of combat. Many of the more bulkier and armored Spartans, that were similar to Jorge, carried armored packs that contained a variety of supplies.

They all filed into the auditorium, one that looked eerily similar to the one they first convened in when they were children on Reach. On the floor were four people John could recognized and also another that he could not, who was present via hologram. There was also a pair of AIs present, both he had not seen before.

Seeing the AIs, though sparked several memories to flash in his mind. _Cortana. Flood. Halo. Guilty Spark._

He remembered the Flood on the Halo installations and how they were determined to consume _everything_ in the galaxy. Only with Cortana's help had he and Johnson destroyed the Lesser Ark along with the Flood with controlled firing of the Halo Array and the Greater Ark throughout UNSC space.

He remembered that Cortana had sacrificed herself to save him from the blast that killed the Didact, who was intending to compose all of Humanity to fight the Flood and return the Forerunners to their former glory.

Of course there was The Covenant but they didn't encounter them as much but when they did, UNSC forces were completely and rapidly demolished. They left no survivors when did show up, only the Spartans ever managed to remain alive in their encounters with the advanced-alien conglomerate. There were only a select few within the military hierarchy that even knew that the conglomerate of species even existed.

However, several premature and extremely lethal strikes against the aliens had rendered them completely into disarray. ONI dubbed the series of operations _First Strikes_ and it was a war fought in the shadows of the Human-Flood War.

Only the Spartan-IIs and select ONI personnel had fought in it and crippled the Covenant to a point where they only needed to watch as the genocidal aliens fought each other to extinction over resources which they did. ONI was extremely methodical in preventing the Covenant from reaching USNC held space and discovering them. One of the few things, that John silently praised them for.

Salvaged Covenant tech was the reason that the devastating energy projector, ship-grade energy shielding and individual energy shielding was now standard issue among the armed forces of the UNSC.

John mentally shook himself from his thoughts as he went to his spot in the auditorium. From his peripheral vision, he saw Halsey going through every single one of the Spartans and inspecting them and the armor personally, similar to what John did in the armory.

He focused his gaze to those in front, the ones that waited for Halsey to join them. One was Fleet Admiral Lasky, who stood in the BDU of the navy and was present via hologram. John knew he was likely present from his command ship, the _UNSC Infinity._

Admiral Serin Osman, was also present via hologram. She held an impassive look but John noticed the slight twitching of the upper corners of her lips. Someone would be hard pressed to see something like that but for a Spartan, they could see it as if it was as clear as day. Their sister-in-arms was happy to see them awake again.

Captain Franklin Mendez stood stoically on the side of the AI. He was neatly dressed in his UNSC marine BDU. He watched impassively as Halsey continued inspecting the armor. He locked gazes with John and their former trainer acknowledged his former trainee with a nod of respect. John nodded, albeit unnoticeable to the untrained eye, back to the marine his respect as well.

The last person in the room, also present via hologram, looked to be an ONI captain, John immediately recognizing the bird and bar, that seemed to a bit out of place. With John's acute eyesight, he read his nametag as David Anderson.

The AI were a different matter entirely. One looked eerily similar to Cortana, but John knew Cortana was dead and her being here was impossible. Even if she hadn't been destroyed while protecting the Chief, even he knew that Halsey would've never had been able to cure Rampancy because, as far as he knew, they just didn't have the capability to stall it or even cure it, not even the Forerunners could if 343 Guilty Spark was any indication.

The woman wore a white, skin-tight, padded suit with golden orange, similar to the Prometheans encountered on Requiem, circuitry laced within.

The other AI seemed to be a little less creative and instead chose to represent itself as a holographic blue pedestal and blue sphere. He figured that this AI was similar to Black Box, who he interacted with only once, and that led him to believe that this AI was ONI-specific. It seemed like a trait that was shared with all the ONI AI in their rather expressionless states.

Halsey then returned to the front where she joined the others. Captain Mendez was first to address the Spartans.

"Spartans! Attention!" He barked out. The thirty supersoldiers stood stoically and rigidly at the order. "At ease." They relaxed but to the normal eye it looked as if they hadn't moved a muscle.

The ONI admiral took command. Behind her was a depiction of a garden world. "This is Shanxi. One of the UEG's most recent colonies. Population is around five million with a garrison of five thousand green army personnel with a column of armor and a wing of fighters."

 _"This feels just like Harvest."_ Adrianna, a member of Gray Team muttered over the private comm. The Spartans all blinked their acknowledgement lights in agreement.

Osman continued. "The orbital defenses only consisted a taskforce of ten _Zodiac-Class_ Frigates as well as a _Preston-Class_ Heavy Cruiser that did not have a full combat load. The onboard contingent numbered about two thousand with a handful of _Mastodons_ and around a hundred superiority craft."

For all the Spartans, their HUDs began displaying information about all the new equipment and vehicles. What caught John's eye was the _Mastodon,_ it was reminiscent of the _Mammoth_ that was used a hundred years prior but larger. Much larger.

Like its predecessor, the Mastodon had a _Mini-MAC_ for anti-warship and anti-fortification use but could be used as a mobile anti-orbital platform. This one was what the original _Elephant_ design was meant to be. A literal base on wheels. Bracing pistons for a siege-type mode, a retractable sniper's nest and a deployable landing pad for VTOL aircraft. There was also more anti-air emplacements scattered across the top.

"Around 26 hours ago, an unknown fleet appeared from this artefact of unknown origin." An image of a silver tuning fork that they all knew, just from the aesthetic design, was not Forerunner. "We have deduced it to be one of their methods of superluminal travel." She added on. "But that is beside the point. 156 hostile ships have entered and engaged the defense forces. What we know is that our ships are superior to theirs but they have the numbers to make that advantage void. The defense fleet was overwhelmed and destroyed but they did enact Cole Protocol to ensure that none of the ships fell into enemy hands. An ONI satellite is currently feeding us with information."

That explains on how Osman has all the knowledge. John knew she would be in charge of this operation personally and would have taken every single precaution to ensure that Humanity would not be caught unawares again.

Fleet Admiral Lasky took his turn to speak, his salt and pepper hair clearly showing his stress and his weary eyes showing signs of fatigue. "Your mission, will be to insert yourselves into the capital, Imes, and repel the invaders. All remaining defenders are surrounded by the emergency bunkers. So far, heavy casualties have been sustained. The _Mastodons_ that are deployed are currently preventing any form of orbital bombardment."

He paused. All the supersoldiers looking at him with their unnerving reflective gazes. Right now, John figured, Lasky was unnerved by their trademark reflective visors. "Captain Anderson?" Lasky gestured to the ONI captain.

"The _Normandy_ will serve as your transportation to the planet. Edi is our attendant AI and will serve as an extra hand of tactical support." The Captain responded. _"A pleasure."_ A distinctly feminine voice that emanated from the floating orb which also pulsated when she spoke.

Lasky nodded. "You will arrive approximately thirty minutes before the 21st Fleet does. Full-scale mobilization is in effect and other fleets will be on their way right behind them with several others on stand-by." It looked as if they were done speaking. "If that is all?" There was no response and his hologram flickered off after a few more moments. The hologram of Captain Anderson fizzled for a second before Mendez said. "We will inform you when the Spartans are en route." The ONI captain nodded and his and Edi's hologram also dissipated.

That left Osman, Halsey, Mendez and the new AI.

"Your handler will be ARI 0875-10 or Aria, a seventh-generation AI." Halsey said gesturing to the orange colored Artificial Intelligence. That got the Spartans' attention, especially John's who was closest to Cortana, so much so that they all visibly turned their helmeted heads to her.

Under the scrutiny of the reflective visors, Aria offered a an extremely hesitant wave from the hip and an equally shy smile and nervous laugh. Halsey continued as if she didn't notice the anxious behavior. "She will be provided most of your tactical data and will assist in anything that is required."

 _"She looks like a replica of Cortana."_ Kelly observed over the private comm. Instantaneously, green acknowledgement lights winked in unison as if they were waiting for someone to comment on that particular aspect of the new AI.

John stepped forward to the front, the eyes of the remaining officials trained on him. Heavy thuds resounded as he continued resolutely towards the front of all the Spartans, who didn't turn their gazes to their leader but instead kept them on the new AI.

-()-

Aria wrung her hands together in anticipation. The entire day she was nervous.

She was always ready to be deployed but throughout all her simulations, not one predicted that this scenario would be relevant.

Being a 7th Generation UNSC Military-Grade AI, had given her all sorts of benefits. Excluding from the traits she inherited from Halsey and the massive amount of processing power she had at her disposal, she knew, while paired with a Spartan-II, that they could be extremely lethal force to be reckoned with.

She was always ready but she never had the combat experience, despite all the data she had and the wealth of information she had accessed to, she knew that it would never be enough when the time actually came and a Spartan's life was decided on how fast she could open an encrypted bulkhead.

But, in all honesty those seconds, however fast they were to her, she spends hacking through terminals or mainframes are what truly matter when in the heat of combat.

And for all intents and purposes, she knew she was _innocent_ and _inexperienced for_ a military-grade AI.

She had been commissioned just for this purpose, to aid the Spartan's in anything they required. Be it cyber-warfare or a constant stream of relevant tactical information. She knew her predecessor, Cortana, had set the bar extremely high, so much so that she was probably considered family by the Spartans. Aria just simply didn't want to be the cause of a Spartan death because she couldn't perform adequately.

She, of course, had done as much research on how the Spartan operated.

They performed differently from standard UNSC conventional tactics of shock and awe that were similar to the strategies used by the German Wehrmacht in World War II.

The Spartans had been originally designed for counter-insurgency operations, unconventional tactics to root out the rebels that threatened the stability of Humanity. But their extremely lethal and effective operations against the Flood and the now, extinct Covenant, had rendered them to use those unconventional tactics to be the surgical precision of a scalpel, instead of the blunt instrument of standard military, and be the best asset the UNSC has in its arsenal to deploy against the Flood or any other threat for that matter.

Under their belt, each Spartan-II had a little over half a century worth of combat experience and each had at least over one hundred and fifty military operations with John-117 leading with over 232 military operations, that was including the 115 military campaigns he participated in.

So standing in front of the thirty individuals, that if they were to get right down to technicalities, had been the ultimate deciding factors in the survival of Humanity during the Insurrection, Human-Flood War and _Operation: First Strikes,_ she had every right to feel small in comparison, having only a year under her belt and that was not even full operation status.

She felt extreme anxiety at the gazes and even more pressure reach her when Master Chief Petty Officer John-117 approached her. Not close enough for her to enter his armor systems by herself but enough so that if he decided to turn away, he could do so without a moment's notice.

Under the inspection of the famed soldier, she couldn't help but feel like she was being inspected for the first time by Halsey. "H-Hi." She said hesitantly.

After a moment but was a literal eternity to the AI, he responded. Not to her but to Halsey. "Who is the carrier?"

Halsey didn't miss a beat. Both Aria and Halsey knew that, primarily John but the other Spartans as well would need to move on from Cortana. "She chose you." He nodded and extended his hand over the pedestal.

She transferred over to his suit and she could see that his vitals changed rising a little above normal as she did so. "I could get used to this." She said as she got comfortable in the suits hardware.

The Spartan didn't show any visible reaction to this but from the vitals she was receiving, she could tell that he was uncomfortable still with her presence. _This is going to take a while._ She thought to herself.

-()-

John was conflicted.

On one hand, he knew the importance of a military-grade AI and how essential it had been in the Human-Flood War and when combating the Covenant. Numerous experiences with Cortana had justified that. She had saved his and _his_ Spartan's lives on numerous occasions.

But it was just that. This AI...this _replacement_ was not Cortana. She didn't have the experience, even though she was AI and could learn, practical application was what really mattered. To John, anyone can learn and be an expert on anything but to be a _master_ at a given field took hands-on experience.

He wouldn't trust her just yet. Not until she proved herself.

He was snapped from his thoughts when Mendez barked out, "There are several pelicans awaiting to take you to the _Normandy._ Get moving Spartans!" They all snapped a crisp salute to which he returned.

They all proceeded outside.John was moving to follow his brothers and sisters when Halsey stopped him. "Bring _them_ home." She whispered.

"Yes Ma'am." He responded and left without another word.

They were directed outside to the bays where three pelicans awaited them. The pelicans that flanked the center one already had their ramps sealed while the center one awaited John who quickly strided over and entered.

He noted that Blue Team, Gray Team and a three members of Red Team were present in the pelican. He entered and the bay closed. Over the bay's intercom system John could hear the signal for take-off and he could feel the Pelican underneath him lift up and take-off towards the _Normandy._

The ride up was silent, not uncommon for Spartan-IIs who generally used the silence to psyche themselves up for the missions. But John knew there was an undercurrent of anxiety.

Almost as if responding to John thoughts, Adrianna's plasma wrist blade crackled to life and break Jai's shields instantaneously. All the Spartan's looked to their more independent sister while Jai lit up in an array of gold as his shields recharged.

 _"Cool."_ She simply muttered over the team comm as she examined the blade intently. Apparently, she still didn't know all the aspects of her suit or simply was wanting to see all the functions in action.

The blade came dangerously close to a member of Red Team who used the butt of her marksman rifle to point the energy blade in a safe direction earning a couple dry chuckles from the all the occupants of the pelican, even Aria. John even managed a small smile albeit it just looked like a single corner of his lip twitched.

The intercom of their pelican suddenly crackled to life and John could feel the turbulence of exiting the world's atmosphere. _"Welcome Spartans! Flight Lieutenant Jeff Moreau speaking."_ A jovial male voice said. _"The Normandy is ready to depart as soon as the order is given!"_

John patched into the comm. "Flight Lieutenant, this is Master Chief Petty Officer Sierra-117 speaking. Depart as soon as we are aboard. We will be ready."

 _"Copy that. Chief!"_ The voice turned a little more quieter, apparently Jeff was facing away from the receiver. _"Guys! The Chief talked to me!"_ The Flight Lieutenant's ecstatic voice said before the intercom cut out. The Spartans green acknowledgement lights winked on. John knew he was being teased by his comrades.

"Just like old times?" Kelly asked her external speakers coming to life.

John nodded. "Just like old times."

The pelicans landed and the Spartans prepared to go to do what they were meant for. _Just like old times._ John thought to himself.

 _ **And there you have it!**_

 _ **Loving the response I am getting! Will further continue all my stories!**_

 _ **Looking for a Beta for this story! Shoot me a message and I will determine if you are Beta potential.**_

 _ **Like always, let me know how did!**_

 _ **Until Next Time!**_


	3. III

_**Enjoy!**_

 _The M180 Ultra-Heavy Mobile Siegeworks/Fortification Weapons Platform (or the Mastodon) is forefront in military command centers. It is currently the largest terrestrial vehicle the UNSC employs in its arsenal. Dwarfing even the Mammoth of 2558, it is around hundred meters long and fills the role of anti-aircraft and anti-warship duties and, to some extent, heavy artillery. Like its predecessor, it could hold a small amount of vehicles as well as a number of infantry. It is able to deploy with bracing pistons furthering its MAC capability as well as a landing pad to accommodate VTOL aircraft. Extremely heavy armor plating makes this machine impervious to gun fire from all weapons as well as being resilient to tanks to a degree. Simulations show that a precise orbital strike or a large ground force is recommended to destroy one._

 _The Mastodon is deployed heavily to garrisons to increase the effectiveness of a defense should the need arise._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (M180 Ultra-Heavy Mobile Siegeworks/Fortification Weapons Platform)_

-()-

Council Spectre Saren Arterius watch impassively as his ship, barely a frigate by Council standards and disguised to look like a Batarian warship, flew at a safe distance from the newly-activated mass relay following in the wake of the entire Batarian fleet that he had been assigned to watch and track along with a handful of Salarian STG operatives.

The fleet when first reported by an STG spy drone had put the Turian Hierarchy into alert. Not enough to require a complete mobilization but enough to be ready should the pirate fleet try something. He had been the closest Spectre that was available and since the Salarians were masters in espionage they sent a nearby STG team to assist.

Normally, Saren liked to work alone. If he needed help he would hire mercenaries. And the Council gave him the help he hated the most.

At the small bridge, the team worked tirelessly when they first arrived. They had to stay out of sensor range else be seen by the pirates. "Spectre. I think you should see this." An STG agent stated. _Vorlan?_ Saren thought his name was. _No, it's Corlan._

Saren casually approached the console the agent was working from. "Scanners indicate that Batarian warships opened fire on unknown vessels."

 _A new species?_ "We know nothing of them? Could they have been damaged too severely for an accurate reading?" He voiced. By now the other three Salarians with them, Saren noticed, began to work faster with this new information.

"No, large sections of debris have writing on them. No known language we have encountered." Corlan responded quickly as he typed away at both his omni-tool and the console in front of him.

"Could be Batarians planning to expand." _This one is Vorlan. Corlan's brother._ "They would be able to enslave this new species if they are new to the galactic community."

"Not enough information to discern. We would have to go through to find out more." The leader of the STG team, Gemnor stated as he turned to Saren. "It's your call."

Technically speaking, Gemnor was in charge. But being a Council Spectre meant that his opinion had the most clout since he was the Council's eyes, ears and mouth for this mission.

"Take us in." _If I can set up a base of operations out here that would be nice. Just need to call in a few favors from the Hegemony._ "Keep us cold. I don't want a pirate getting curious."

They didn't respond but instead went to work and in a few moments they were enveloped in a blue energy and catapulted forward. They exited and the sight Saren beheld was truly one he would remember.

Immediately, data flowed onto the console in droves. Red lights flickered on, marking the presence of hostile forces and blast shields covered the vulnerable windows that had allowed Saren and the STG team observe the space outside.

"Reading two massive spikes of radiation and gravitational surges close by, going mobile to avoid gravitation distortions!" Corlan said urgently. Saren felt the small ship lurch and strain as it moved away from the massive anomalies.

"Nine unknowns orbiting a garden world, correction eleven! One scaling to a super-dreadnaught estimated to be five thousand meters long with a honey-comb superstructure. Ten others being cruiser-weight. A single space station is in geosynchronous orbit with the planet, specifications match those of the theoretical space elevator."

"By the Spirits..." Saren whispered as he looked over the energy outputs of the unknown ships. Gemnor looked over his shoulder and went wide-eyed, or rather as far as his already large eyes would get.

"The super-dreadnaught is putting off more energy than all of the Hierarchy's dreadnaughts combined!" The Salarian exclaimed. Of course, he would know the energy output of the Hierarchy's fleets. "These readings...it should be impossible..."

"It clearly isn't." Saren barked at the awe-stricken Salarian somewhat calming him down, but he could see the anxiety in the green skinned Salarian. "Get us to a safe distance and keep cataloguing all the data. Once the Batarians punch through the defense force we will move groundside. Actually, keep us near that pack of frigates there." He pointed to the activated battle map. The group of frigates was near the outside and in the middle of the Batarian formation, more than likely, Saren deduced, it would escape relatively unscathed in the ensuing combat.

Saren watched the battle map intently. He was right in that the group his ship would be following didn't engage the unknowns but he almost felt pity for the ones that were at the forefront of the attack as their holographic representations fizzled out indicating that they were outright destroyed by massive slugs that registered as 800-tonnes. Missiles streamed from the defenders and impacted all across the Batarian Fleet. He even felt the shudders of his ship as it was hit by two. By his estimates though only about twenty one pirate frigates and six cruisers were destroyed from the first salvo of the defenders, the rest of the missiles having been destroyed by the fleet's GUARDIAN systems.

Dozens of unknown fighters jettisoned from the unknown ships and circled them like bees guarding their hives.

Copying the unknown fleet's movements, the fighters of the slaver fleet also left their holds to join the inevitable combat in the void.

"Kinetic barriers at 17%!" Vorlan announced. Saren was surprised that the barriers even held considering how small their ship was. If Saren's ship was directly targeted, he held no doubt that they would've been space dust right now.

"Two massive heat signatures coming off of the super-dreadnaught!" Another Salarian announced. The Spectre never bothered to learn their names, mainly because they weren't important or rather didn't have anything that was noteworthy about them.

Suddenly, the hologram of the super-dreadnaught fizzled for a second as a duo of bright beams lashed out from the second honeycomb and pierced the hulls of a trio of cruisers and a duo of frigates. The beam completely disregarded the notion of kinetic barriers and all at once the five ships that were caught by the beam erupted in rippling explosions throughout the entirety of their superstructures before completely detonating.

The slavers had yet to fire back.

His face remained impassive as he noted that particular bit of information. _Spirits that weapon sure has one hell of a bite._ The Spectre thought to himself.

He finally watched as the still-advancing Batarian fleet opened up with their _first_ salvo.

124 mass accelerator rounds as well as disruptor torpedoes streaked across the void in hopes of annihilating the outnumbered fleet. However, since the mass accelerator rounds were the faster of the two munitions, they struck across the ten ships as well as the orbiting space elevator more however missed their intended targets and zoomed past the fleet to the planet below.

The unknown fighters were able to escape unscathed.

 _The atmosphere will burn those projectiles up._ Saren thought to himself. One would need a dreadnought to fire upon a terrestrial world from orbit as the rounds from the smaller ships would merely burn up. If a standard Council frigate was to have support duties it would have to act like an over-sized fighter or bomber essentially.

A cruiser would just enter geosynchronous orbit and bombard from above.

Dreadnaughts however were forbidden from firing at garden worlds because of the damage it would incur. And unless the Batarians didn't want any slaves by the end of this fight, they wouldn't use a Dreadnaught for orbital fire support.

Across the small group of ships, massive bright blue hexagonal shields lit up as they were struck by the mass accelerator rounds. The torpedoes were right on the trails of their faster and more powerful cousins.

In response to the torpedoes, the unknown's activated their point-defense systems to intercept them. Scores of the torpedoes were shot out of the void but one cruiser fell prey to an onslaught of them and Saren watched as the shield protecting the ship from danger had winked out of existence and with a few more of the torpedoes impacting across the super-structure and causing explosions to appear throughout. With the ships armor warping from the lethal torpedoes, the superstructure gave way to the pressure and collapsed in an explosion that Saren knew would leave nothing but scrap metal to be scavenged.

Saren wondered how the ship fell so quickly. Maybe the reactor went critical? No, a cruiser would be able to take a beating but usually a cruiser wouldn't have its reactor breached in combat. Maybe, a torpedo got lucky and hit a munitions depot? In which case that could have detonated the entire ship, that idea seemed more likely the case.

The only other plausible explanation as to why the ship had blown up the way it was due to self-detonation. But why?

Saren couldn't think of any reason as to why the captain of that ship would self-destruct his ship, other than keeping technology out of the enemy hands but that would've been accomplished anyways if the Batarians had to mission kill the ships. If this was the case then to self-destruct was merely a means to ensure they didn't get anything valuable.

He shook his head. He needed to be focused on the mission.

After a good ten minutes, as battles in space usually never lasted long, the Batarian Fleet had defeated the technologically superior defense fleet. But what unnerved and frustrated Saren too no end is that all the ships had been destroyed the exact same way.

Extremely heavy damage done to the ships by explosions occurring throughout the entirety of the superstructures followed by a massive explosion that would engulf the entire ship, leaving nothing behind but scrap metal. It was too much of a coincidence to not notice. The commanders of those ships were self-destructing to ensure technological superiority.

 _Not that it would matter._ Saren thought. This seemed like the only fleet they had. There couldn't possibly be more of them.

At one point, he did see a massive group of unknown fighters and dropships headed to the planet's surface, fleeing the super-dreadnaught before it detonated. They quickly entered the atmosphere.

Frigates moved to intercept the mass exodus but Saren watched in awe as they were ripped apart from mass accelerator fire originating from the surface. Although a few Batarian frigates and fighters were lucky to catch a few in the wake of the raining debris of their dead comrades.

"Follow that group of frigates into the planet." He ordered as he watched the battle in space come to a close. The Batarians had boarded the space station and it didn't take a genius to know that they were going to try and use it to ferry supplies down. "And someone get these Spirits-damned blast shields open!" He shouted more out of frustration rather than anger. He hated relying on the holo-table and Salarians for information on what was occurring outside.

The Salarians, again, didn't respond and instead continued to guide them through the atmosphere. For a moment, Saren thought they didn't hear his comment on opening the shields but they slid open just as he was about to make another comment on opening them before he strangled one of them. He would've done it himself _if_ he had known where the controls were.

Now he really was awed from the surface to orbit mass-accelerator rounds. He also understood why all the signals for the unknown fighters and dropships had disappeared from the holo-table.

Anyone, even the best among Turian weapons officers, would have been hard-pressed or extremely frustrated to shoot through the extremely dense rain clouds and heavy lightning, much less actually hit anything with deadly accuracy. But these unknowns had managed to keep surprising him. The storm may have been a stroke of luck for the defenders but they were taking advantage of it.

It seems they also had advanced computing if they were also able to shoot accurately through the storm. A primitive VI of sorts was probably assisting them.

"World has indication of advanced terraforming. Also reading multiple unknown signals coming from about fifty kilometers west of here. Most likely the unknowns are located there. The signals are too distorted to make anything from them, most likely the storm." A different Salarian announced.

Saren watched as more frigates and even a cruiser descended into the atmosphere. He noticed dozens of pirate dropships fly out of the cargo bays of the ships.

But Saren _felt_ something wrong about this. It was too quiet. Too quiet and too easy for the invasion force to land.

As if in response to his thoughts, a mass accelerator round slammed into the frigate that was right next to them. The kinetic barriers barely slowly down the firepower as it pierced the flimsy frigate in half and engulfed the warship in flames. The cargo hold spewed out equipment and dead pirates while a dropship that was on fire flew out and into the clouds, in an attempt to be rid of the flames. Another shot hit his ship, rocking it to its core and throwing the Council Spectre and the Salarians about the command and control. He felt the ship lurch downward.

"Engines have been hit! Barriers are down! Get us below the cloud cover!" Gemnor said quickly. "Get us to some type of cover!"

Saren quickly picked himself up and looked about the viewing areas. Immediately, the sky above them lit up in flashes of red and blue as the Batarian invasion force was ripped apart. Falling debris that was creating artificial meteors rained around them like the water that was currently pounding against the reinforced windows.

If the slavers wanted to land in the city, they were going to be ripped apart. They would have to land outside and assault the city head-on.

"Multiple contacts! Unknown fighters and Batarian fighters coming in!" Vorlan shouted.

He looked out the viewport once again and saw multiple fighters dog fighting dangerously close to them with even a few zooming past the ship. Saren got a good look at the unknown jets as they plummeted towards the ground.

They were a gray color with wings making it look like it was a viscous sword. _No doubt that that was the intention._ Saren thought to himself. It was kind of fitting as he watched the unknown planes cut through the air with speed and precision.

He was shook out of reverie as he saw a forest appear below them.

"Brace for impact!" Gemnor shouted. The STG team begun securing themselves. Saren was too far away for him to grab a hold of anything and secure himself. He silently prayed that his armor would protect him.

 _At least we aren't going to crash head into the forest._ Saren thought before darkness consumed him.

-()-

General Williams stood watching the battle unfold from the holo-map from the safety of the seven _Mastodons_ that the defense fleet had so generously supplied.

His army BDU was almost immaculate as he wasn't outside when the storm blew in. He could hear the rain pound against the reinforced plating and glass and the roar of both the thunder and Mini-MACs as they opened fire on the light frigates that were entering atmosphere. Inside, a number of the Mastodon's operators were rushing about to make sure it was operating smoothly and efficiently, making it hard for him to lose himself in his thoughts.

 _They may have orbital supremacy but the Mastodons will keep them at bay, for now._ Williams thought to himself.

He knew that their survival and that victory was reliant on the mobile siege equipment to remain functional, so he made it a point to keep armor support close by and at least a platoon worth of infantry to protect each one. The remaining armor and infantry was spread out in a wide perimeter at the city limits.

The plan was based around the idea of collapsible lines, checkpoints his men would fall back to if they were beginning to be overwhelmed. With each checkpoint laced with explosives, that were remote controlled and the detonator at the Mastodon so as to minimize difficulty with activating them and dug deep into the ground so as to avoid any premature explosions, and fresh troops, so as to give his men a retreating chance and rest as they would leap frog it back. It was standard garrison protocol so as to allow them to hold back any invaders for as long as possible.

Flexible enough so that they can retreat to the next area of defense should the need arise but solid enough so that they didn't give the aliens a hole to punch through. The final area that would be their last stand would be around the emergency bunkers where he and the rest of the Mastodons were located.

Charlie, the military-grade AI that was assigned to them as both the aide and infrastructure AI since Command didn't want to commission another civilian-based AI due to costs, was in control of the MACs and was directing the air force in striking the airborne aliens from the cover of the clouds.

Currently, he was still directing forces all around the city but as soon as he saw the numbers he would soon be facing, he knew there would be one hell of a fight. With the Mastodons and AA batteries that they had set up before hand, they were able to create a literal no-fly area for hostile forces.

He was so reliant on the Mastodons being able to counter both the orbital force and hostile air forces that it made him sick.

He knew that relying on a single piece of equipment for survival would probably be the death of him but he had no other choice.

He wasn't a firm believer in any deities but he silently prayed to whatever god or gods that existed that he and his men would come out alive at the end of this and that help was on the way.

"Enemy is landing outside the city. Sir." Charlie quickly added from the holo-table. While still an infrastructure AI, he was for all intents and purposes a military one. For the most part, he didn't interfere with the day-to-day activities of the populace because they simply didn't need him and until they were a sprawling metropolis then they wouldn't need one. He mostly just coordinated shipping from the orbital elevator and stayed with the defense fleet most of the time.

His data chip was among the first pelicans on the mass exodus from _The Howling Wind._ He was considered a strategically-important asset and technically-speaking, from an ONI standpoint, the colony didn't matter so long as the AI didn't fall into enemy hands. It also hurt his ego to know that he was considered expendable compared to the AI.

"Continue focusing on the alien fleet. We can't risk an artillery strike and leave our skies open." Williams responded.

"Yes sir." Charlie responded, his feet slightly shuffling as well as his hand guiding a circular hologram and twirling it, in a circular motion, before pressing it. He felt his particular Mastodon shudder as its slug left the massive barrel at an alarming speed. Thunder soon followed the shudder which was then replaced by a couple flashes of lightning.

"How many have we brought down?" Williams asked curiously, maybe he could risk putting a Mastodon on fire support.

"Eleven light frigates and one heavy frigate." Charlie immediately responded. "They got smart and are no longer heading for the city."

"And our aircraft? How are they doing?"

"We lost twenty three birds sir. A tenth of what we originally had."

"Tell them to disengage and to keep the city skies ours. We need to consolidate what we have left." The General ordered.

"Aye sir. Relaying orders now."

And now it was a matter of waiting for the true bloodshed to begin.

-()-

Captain David Anderson was like any naval officer of the UNSC.

Except for the fact that he was originally an ODST.

And that he was technically a naval officer of ONI.

Scratch that, he was as far as he could get from any sense of normality. ONI was the leader of the unconventional after all.

He was an ODST Lieutenant when he was transferred over to ONI's naval division. The official statement from them was that Command wanted another liaison so that more ODSTs would be open to special operations rather than just shock troopers.

He knew it was a lie, but he decided he wouldn't be swayed by their morals and ethics.

He was immediately sucked into the world of gray that was The Office of Naval Intelligence. His decision quickly buckled after his first mission.

ONI had changed him. Molded him into what he was today.

Gone was his gung-ho nature of ODSTs, he now had the cool and calculative personality that was befitting of ONI personnel. It brought his more ambitious nature and refined his leadership skills to a fine edge. After an accelerated year of schooling in naval tactics and strategy, he was promoted to Captain where his first commission was the _UNSC Tokyo,_ a _Keyes_ - _Class_ Heavy Cruiser, above the ONI research facility at Shield World 0678 or _Rhonwen_.

His tactical capability was them sighted by ONI higher-ups who then placed him, in command of the experimental _Normandy SR-1_ , the first of the _Normandy-Class_ and first stealth ship to utilize Forerunner technology in full rather than basic stealth tech. From what Anderson knew, it was to replace the aging _Winter-Class_ and _Sahara-Class_ and get the best from both ships. The speed from the _Winter-Class_ and stealth from the _Sahara-Class._

His first mission with the _Normandy_? Transport the legendary Spartan-IIs to the colony of Shanxi and provide tactical support for the 21st Fleet that was to come in their wake.

He had a high opinion of the Spartan-IIs. Their cold and ruthless professionalism was welcomed aboard his ship and he certainly preferred that over Jeff's, or rather Joker's as the crew had begun calling him, witty and comical personality.

Granted, having a morale booster was a welcome and his experience was even better. Anderson had been through Joker's files. He had been serving with ONI far longer than the rest of the crew had, even Anderson. To say that Joker has been through a lot would be an understatement.

He had been an extremely valuable asset when reclaiming worlds from the Flood from providing vital intel to dangerous hit and run raids. He had worked with dozens if not hundreds of ONI operators during his deployment and learned a lot from them.

Anderson knew that underneath that comical exterior was someone that knew how to get the job done with the utmost efficiency and was the reason why Anderson had chosen him to pilot the _Normandy SR-1._

He was shaken from his thoughts when _the_ Master Chief stepped onto the bridge. His heavy footfalls resounding as he entered. Most of the bridge crew stopped their activities and looked towards the living legend they had thought long dead. The iconic gold reflective visor looking towards Anderson.

Anderson knew that the gold visor was actually reserved for Spartan-IIs only. Being captain with ONI allowed him access to certain files pertaining to Spartan-IIs. It was more of a generalized report on all the Spartan-II operatives rather than an in-depth analysis of each operative, such as their wartime service record.

He knew those to be classified and all of HIGHCOM and Security Council would have to have a unanimous agreement before those were released to even the most trusted ONI agent.

Even Anderson felt privileged to be in the presence of the man he also once thought dead, along with the rest of the Spartan-IIs. But he was able to have his face remain professional rather than the open gawking that his crew was currently doing. "Alright, back to work! We have a mission to prep for!" Anderson barked out.

The crew quickly snapped out of their self-imposed reverence for the Spartan that saved all of Humanity and returned to their duties. Anderson noted that they had a more life in their step.

He read that his mere presence would bring exhausted soldiers to bear arms with renewed vigor, almost as if they were never tired to begin with.

He approached the Captain and saluted. "Master Chief Petty Officer Sierra 117, reporting for duty."

"At ease." He responded with a salute, and gestured for the Spartan to follow him which he did. Anderson found it odd that he didn't hear the resounding footfall he heard only moments before.

Anderson led him to a battle map. "Edi, project the current situation at Shanxi."

 _"Yes Captain."_ The battle map lit up in color as the view was from the ONI stealth drone. Master Chief extended his palm over the battle map and an orange electrical current passed onto the battle map. Anderson figured it was the AI that he had met about half an hour earlier. He found her to be a jovial one and very outspoken.

Aria looked towards Anderson with eyes that said she was having second thoughts. It seemed she was uncomfortable with being in the presence of those that had carried her older sister and were distant. Something she was not used to working with. She was usually with those that talked, Anderson assumed, and was uncomfortable with those that rarely talked.

Apart from that she looked fine and even brought up more detailed reports of the situation.

Aria spoke first. "Current satellite scans show that the garrison is holding the line at the capital. No orbital bombardment yet from the unknowns. The garrison though shows to be slowly retreating."

Edi's hologram appeared. "Estimates of hostile ground forces include around twenty thousand infantry and a number of armor and aircraft. The defenders are outnumbered approximately 3 to 1."

"We will be arriving in ten minutes." The ship had entered slipspace as soon as the Spartans were aboard. "As with your current orders, a couple new ones have been added. You are to recover CHR 3754-01V from General Williams when you arrive. Also a different unknown ship was shot down in the early moments of the ground invasion. Its similar but we have reason to believe that they are not with the invaders." Edi elaborated. "We will be reassigning Gray Team to capture any intel and/or survivors from the crash."

Anderson watched the Master Chief digest this information with ease. He nodded his head and his low, baritone voice responded. "Forward all tactical data to Aria. HALO jump in fifteen." He said quickly as he extended his palm over the battle map and the same orange electric spark jumped into it. He turned and quickly left through the original doors he came through.

"This is going to be interesting." Joker predicted aloud from the cockpit.

"With you and the Spartans? Of course." Anderson responded with a slight smile.

-()-

 _The Gladius Air/Space Superiority Fighter provide the bulk of Air Force and Navies aircraft. It is highly maneuverable and since it able to operate in any environment with extreme ease, it is highly favored amongst pilots. Onboard light energy shielding and medium to heavy armor provides the protection of the plane while the offensive armaments include Onager missiles as well as dual gatling guns. Advance sensor suites allow them to transit live battle data to commanders on the field.._

 _While strategic bombers are still in use, the Gladius fills the role of standard bomber as well as scout aircraft._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (Gladius Air/Superiority Fighter)_

 _ **And so it begins!**_

 _ **I respond to reviews through PM as responding to them through the story only add to the word count and makes the chapter seem longer than it actually is. That means if you want a response...get an account.**_

 _ **Still looking for a Beta!**_

 _ **Until Next Time!**_


	4. IV

_**Enjoy!**_

-()-

 _The MA5-ARA1 Individual Weapon Systems is the standard issue firearm among conventional infantry forces. The titanium frame combined with a nano-fiber interlace makes it a sturdy and reliable weapon in hand-to-hand combat. Munitions include the standard M120-FMJ APST bullet._

 _The Special Operations branch, namely the Spartan Branch has access to variant that utilizes Directed Energy that have been derived from Covenant tech._

 _Due to costs and, namely, situational, it has been decided that research and development be focused on attempting Hard-Light weaponry for mass production. We simply have more samples and experience with Forerunner tech rather than Covenant._

 _Currently, we have prototypes for the MA5-ARA2 that uses hard-light for standard munitions. If everything works out, Special Operations units will be receiving refits in two to three years with standard infantry in five to ten, depending how fast the contract can go out._

 _For reference purposes, it has taken us the better part of the century to crack this piece of technology._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (MA5-AR Individual Weapon Systems) and (MA5-ARA2 Individual Weapon Systems)_

-()-

ODST Lieutenant Erika Shepard, XO to General Williams when her Captain had been killed during a hasty retreat, had her fill of combat for the day.

Heavy raindrops smashed against her armor and light energy shielding while lightning streaked overhead and friendly fighter craft flying in formation into the chaos and carnage that was dog fighting. The armor would keep her relatively dry while the bodysuit she wore would keep her warm.

She was exhausted. Or maybe frustrated was a better word? She honestly didn't care.

She and her platoon were deployed at the beginning stages of what would be known as _The Battle for Shanxi._ They came in the HEVs and were concentrated in the western part of the city where most of the heavy fighting was bound to take place.

" _Heads up!"_ One of the forward recon teams had announced over the UNSC secured comms, snapping her from her thoughts. _"Quads are moving in with around a battalion strength and armor support. Fly-boys are keeping their air pinned."_ The soldier had used the moniker bestowed upon them due to their four eyes.

To Erika, the thought of having an extra pair of eyes confused her. Trying to process all that extra information would've no doubt be hard, but then again since she excelled in her science studies she knew that those eyes would have been an advantage in becoming the dominant race in their homeworld.

General Williams voice answered, her HUD indicated that this was the officer's specific comm channel. _"This is the last line, hold them here. Quads are moving in full force from all directions and the Mastodons are preoccupied. You are on your own. I've committed everything to this defense. I've taken preemptive measures for a couple of platoons to hold up in the bunkers. Anything, short of a massive orbital bombardment, will have a hard time. Best of luck to you all."_

So this was it. The final 'Hurrah' before they died. Shepard knew that if reinforcements were on the way, they would be here any minute. _Any minute._ She thought blandly.

She mounted her standard-issue MA5 rifle on a pile of rubble where several of her comrades followed suit to hold the line. Soon, they were joined by a ragtag group of marines and army men and women who also set up behind the wall of rubble.

The rest of her platoon was scattered across the various buildings and entrenchments, that were in various states of destruction, and were over looking their position.

The sounds of combat were growing ever closer.

She had set her motion tracker to the maximum possible, which was five hundred meters, and was beginning to see the familiar yellow dots appear at the far edges. The onset of a dense fog hours earlier also hadn't helped at all as there were reports of friendly fire throughout the perimeter.

She certainly hadn't had her experience with that horrible nightmare scenario yet since her troops were all good shots and knew when to fire. But the anxiousness of the green, inexperience men and women that basically amounted to what qualified as militia was what had her on edge.

The loud rumbling of a tank, again, brought her attention back to how bad the situation was. Before being deployed, after the HEV drop of course, she had met with the General personally. He explicitly stated that armored support will be scarce if present at all and will most likely held in reserve until they were absolutely needed.

She visibly turned to see the tank driver situate his machine of pure destruction into an even more defensible position, surrounded by uprooted concrete, asphalt, titanium beams and a massive mound of dirt.

The _Scorpius_ was almost completely hidden in the destruction with only its turret visible, scanning the area, the fog lightly blanketing her view of the tank making it even more obscure and she was pretty close to it already.

She turned her attention back to the front of her as she checked her bullet counter. It was full and she knew she had at least eight magazines left with her. She was fairly good at quick math so that put her at around three hundred and twenty rounds. "Not nearly enough." Erika muttered to herself.

Her motion tracker displayed that the retreating forces were around a three hundred meters in front of them and quickly getting closer. _Optimal firing range._ Erika thought to herself. If the fog wasn't there she would have been able to see them but she could only see a maximum of thirty meters in front of her, something she was not too enthusiastic to shoot in.

The nearby battle net lit up as the retreating UNSC forces got closer.

 _"Watch your fire! Friendlies inbound!"_

 _"Quads swarming in on the right! Someone plug that hole!"_

 _"Incoming!"_ An explosion not that far away from her rattled the not so secure buildings.

 _"Is that ours?! Friendly Fire! Stop shooting!"_ The chatter of the familiar gunfire made her cringe and shiver. She could imagine the soldier waving his arms, trying in vain to signal his comrades to stop.

IFF tags, while in use, didn't help as the very green troops had no experience whatsoever and Army didn't have the advanced motion trackers' firmware in their gear. They simply didn't need it as they were used for garrisons mostly. _This damn fog!_ Shepard mentally screamed.

 _"Six hostiles converging on your left!"_ The echoing gunfire originated in front of her.

 _"Get over the wall! Get over the wall! Get ov-!"_ An explosion close enough that she could see a small inferno that dried up some, but not nearly enough, of the dense fog.

"Steady!" She barked as she could almost literally feel the uneasiness that was emanating from the green troops. The sounds of battle were so close that if she didn't have her sound dampeners activated she was sure that she could've been deaf by now. "Don't fire unless all our boys are here!"

She could see tracer rounds and the thermal rounds being traded throughout the fog. The rain seemed to only increase in its efforts to wash away everything.

She didn't have to worry about the tank firing on allies. They had thermal sensors that would allow them to see through the dense fog.

The battle net suddenly grew eerily quiet, like comms had simply ceased to exist. If they were being jammed, there would be static but even that was absent. It was simply quiet.

A couple moments later, the firefights stopped. Everything stopped, the explosions and the gunfire. Only the planes overhead seemed to be the only ones to not be fazed by what was going on in the ground war. Only distant, sporadic gunfire pierced the silence but it was so far away it could be ignored. Only the thunderous barks of the Mastodons was heard. That and the rain. The rain was loud as hell.

The slight shuffling of those under her command confirmed that they noticed as well. "What the hell is going on?" One of the ODSTs beside her whisper-shouted, he didn't want to be the one that would jinx the situation. He thumbed the safety, that had been on, of his assault rifle just in case.

For what felt like hours, Shepard waited. Her finger dangerously close to squeezing the trigger. In a half second, the silence was broken by a high-powered coil gun being discharged with an easily recognizable blue hue. The blue strike of the discharged round struck like lightning and penetrated a Quad tank causing it to erupt in flames.

The defense forces had nothing like that in their arsenal. Otherwise, Shepard would know about it or rather, would have it in her platoon's possession.

A millisecond later, dozens of cobalt lances struck at the advancing Quads. The blue lights creating silhouettes of heavily armored beings in the fog.

She had never expected to see _them_ in her lifetime as all the rumors pointed to the _them_ as deceased. The newer generation had taken over though they weren't as awe-inspiring as the Twos, who had long been rumored dead.

 _Spartans._ She thought numbly and now she understood why the battlefield gave a long (in combat terms) pause.

-()-

John watched as his Spartans were all geared up and ready to go. They climbed aboard the five awaiting pelicans that were being remote-piloted by Aria.

John didn't want to risk ONI pilots being shot down behind enemy lines.

The ramps closed and the lights dimmed to a menacing red hue. They were about to exit slipspace.

"Cut comm traffic on the ground and space once we are in atmosphere, don't cut air comms. I want full radio silence here on out. Secure us a channel and inform Captain Anderson." John said over the comm. Aria's face appeared on the upper-right hand corner of his HUD replacing the readouts for his weapon.

His reasoning was that he couldn't be sure if secured UNSC comm lines had been breached. They also needed to keep their arrival as quiet as possible to avoid being seen as too much of a threat, otherwise they'll risk their ships for an orbital bombardment.

The air force could care less about a group of pelicans. They would be so busy dealing with enemy air that they wouldn't notice the comms to their HQ were cut.

Granted, there would be confusion in the beginning but as soon as Aria can confirm that comms were secured, then he'll order them open. But he would keep them cut for the enemy.

If they couldn't coordinate an attack or defense then they'll be slaughtered when the fleets arrived.

 _"Copy that. Exiting Slipspace and sending tactical data."_ Aria paused. _"Things aren't looking good down there."_ By her change in tone, it was safe to say that the defense was on its last legs.

"Systems check." One by one an acknowledgement light winked green, reporting that they were ready to go. John turned and tossed a ARC-250 Railgun to Jorge, who forewent the cumbersome heavy machine gun that would typically be found on a LFV, as he knew that the lightweight Railgun would be more practical.

He knew the severity of the situation. His team, a mixture of Blue and Red Team, would be dropping in the heaviest fighting while the others would be dropping all over the city.

Gray Team was the exception. They would be going to a crash site that was placed at a high-priority objective. While their pelican had a process of Aria in it, they would be flying theirs in.

There was silence as the Spartans waited in the hold of the _Normandy._ The silent hum of the pelican's engines was one of the only things that occupied his mind as he waited for the Captain to give the order to exit. He asked Aria to pull up the enemy troop movements.

He noticed flaws right off the bat and knew that this species was arrogant. They were going for full-frontal assaults and if the UNSC knew anything than that would be defense and delaying actions. The Human-Flood War taught them as much.

There was no tactical motive behind these assaults though. No flanking maneuvers or constant pressure, just 'group up and attack' rinse and repeat was their strategy. It made him think of the Covenant or rather the Brutes, who simply, as their name moniker implied, relied on brute force and sheer numbers to overwhelm.

There was an unusually high concentration of hostiles several kilometers west of the capital. From the layout of the encampment, John quickly deduced that that was the command and control for the invaders.

They stood silently, waiting, preparing the only way Spartans know how to. Silence and studying. They would be ready.

John felt the ship enter the atmosphere of the planet.

 _"Godspeed, Spartans."_ Anderson's voice said over the comm than he felt the dropship lurch forward and out.

 _"Comms are cut."_ Aria said as her voice took on a more serious tone. Something she hadn't used yet only just displaying nervous giddiness. Now her tone mirrored Halsey's when she wanted something done. Even the most battle-hardened ODSTs were afraid of the good Doctor. John figured that being the creator of the Spartan programs had its clout.

John stepped towards the ramp controls and punched them to open. Fighters flew at high velocities around them. Lightning streaked and, with his augmented vision he watched, impacted one unlucky UNSC Gladius who's shields flared a bright blue before a duo of enemy fighters took the chance to rid the air of another defender. John turned away from the ensuing inferno and prepared himself.

"Light is green." He simply said and they all jumped out with their internal thrusters adding to the speed.

John pointed to Jorge and Aaron indicated with a hand movement that they would land in the front of the enemies. Since John didn't know the capabilities of the enemy armor he had to assume the worst and get rid of it quickly, and they had the best defensive capabilities in the group.

John looked to his left and right to see all the other Spartans descending in formation.

"Watch the fighters." The Spartan ordered as they dropped past. "Aria, mark all armor. Switch to thermals when we hit ground side."

 _"Copy."_ Acknowledgement lights lit up and the outlines of enemy armor lit up as well on the ground, right now as small squares that were ever expanding.

They had jumped at eighty thousand feet and were falling at terminal velocity with their thrusters only adding to the speed. If they had jumped at Earth, it would've been considered exoatmospheric but due to the thick atmosphere that needed terraforming and given that the planet was already massive, it expanded.

 _Thirty thousand feet._ Right above the cloud cover and where he saw the UNSC fighter get destroyed. _"Rain. Careful it's going to get hectic in a couple moments."_ Aria stated. John knew it was said to all Spartans as he noticed the supersoldiers tightening their formation and their shields flaring a golden orange hue as they strengthened them.

His altitude meter was decreasing dozens of feet every passing moment.

Aria was right. The intense air combat reminded him of _The Fall of Reach_ in how fierce the combat was. Tracer rounds and missiles lit up the sky as lightning danced about and with rain pounding against everything solid and pouring into everything that was not, it was hard to imagine a more awe-inspiring scene.

But the Spartans weren't there to admire the scenery.

 _Fifteen thousand feet._ Anti-aircraft fire lit up the dull and dreary sky as flak exploded near them and taking out or damaging any plane that dared fly close to the city.

They weaved their way to their designated drop points. Now they knew the severity of situation.

It was one thing to hear it but it was another to see it firsthand. The battle lines were too close to the Mastodons for any sane commander's liking.

The fog obscured their vision to an extent but after quick scans conducted by Aria, they had a near-perfect picture of the situation.

The Mastodons themselves were spewing out slugs at an alarming rate and only pausing to allow the massive guns to cool down. There was an ever growing mountain of depleted uranium shells at the base of the colossal vehicles.

He was impressed with the tact in grouping the Mastodons, it allowed for an easier fallback point and to coordinate fire better but there was a major flaw in the decision as all it would take would be one idiotic but _smart_ captain or pilot to destroy all the Mastodons in a single, swift strike. _Like the Flight Lieutenant._ He thought.

 _Five thousand feet._ They wouldn't be seen until they hit the ground.

 _Two thousand feet._ They slowed their speed with their thrusters.

 _One thousand feet._ The Spartans all simultaneously flipped their legs under them and started igniting their thrusters sporadically to use the bare minimum to slow them down to a survivable speed.

 _Five hundred feet._ John could clearly see the tracer rounds being exchanged as the UNSC defense retreated to their last line of defense.

A series of extremely loud thuds were heard, sending dust and torn asphalt in all directions.

John's senses went into overdrive. Knees bent, rifle snapped into position and aimed down range. From the corners of his eyes Kelly and Linda stacked behind the hulks of Jorge and Aaron while Fred stood at his side with his weapon at the ready. His optics instantly switched to thermal vision and could see a number of aliens standing in shock.

In the phenomena, known as Spartan Time, a total of twenty milliseconds passed as the Spartans got into position and had their tools of destruction pointed at their new enemies.

Jorge squeezed the trigger and instantly a depleted uranium projectile, magnetically accelerated, pierced the hull of a hostile tank. The ensuing fireball consumed three nearby hostiles.

The augmented soldiers wasted no time in pressing their advantageous surprise. Immediately, twenty seven more enemies were killed with lethal efficiency, before the invaders and defenders came to their senses and returned or aided in combat.

John shields flared a golden hue and he quickly snapped his rifle to the offending soldier that fired at him. The four-eyed alien slumped to the ground, dead before he even knew it. _"Comms are secured, rebooting them and we'll have secure channels from here on out."_

The local battle net lit up.

 _"The Spartans are here!"_

 _"It's the Master Chief!"_

 _"Push forward! A platoon with me! You three, secure those buildings and get me some fire support!"_ A female voice shouted. John admired that this particular officer that was taking advantage of the shock that the Spartans provided.

He and his Spartans quickly pushed forward, eliminating most of the aliens in their way while giving the more conventional defense time to regroup. "Jorge, Linda and Fred, keep up the pressure don't let them regroup. Aria, get us LZs to clear for the relief forces, transmit them to both air and my Spartans. Aaron, Cover the medics and get the wounded to our lines. Kelly, with me to retrieve the AI."

His HUD lit up like a Christmas tree. Green acknowledgment lights winked, markers and waypoints flashed on while every Spartan split themselves up into pairs to secure landing zones. Waypoints winking out as they were taken up by his brothers and sisters.

The relief forces would be here in the next twenty minutes and they would need efficient coverage of the city to take it back.

John and Kelly moved with a purpose, ignoring the awe-stricken looks they got from weary service men and women as made their way to the command Mastodon.

He turned off his thermal sights and was greeted with foggy and gruesome scene.

His first sight of the group of Mastodons had been from around ten thousand feet in the air but he only had a quick glimpse. Now though, a full picture was place before him. Tents were flooded with wounded while the dead were given proper respects. Vehicles hurried to their next response while others were give field repairs before being rushed off somewhere else.

But as the duo entered another hushed silence had fallen on the camp with only anti-aircraft batteries, firefights and Mini-Macs piercing it. The watched them with renewed hope. John figured that was one of the reasons they were sent before the main force. To be the desperately needed morale booster so that there would be a city and its populace to liberate when relief forces arrived.

The pair entered the large command vehicle, putting their weapons on their magnetic clamps as they did so. Several engineers that were tending to a few damaged vehicles stopped what they were doing to watch as the famed Spartan-IIs moved up the stairs quickly.

An aide to the general moved up against the wall as she had no intention of being run-over by a half metric ton of the finest hardware the military had to offer since they didn't look as if they were going to slow down.

They entered the command and control and saw a relieved but exhausted garrison general looking over the holographic battle map of the capital. There were several attendees to the Mastodon controls.

John wasted no time. "Master Chief Petty Officer Sierra-117, reporting in." He and Kelly snapped off a perfect salute. His announcement garnered the attention of everyone present. Their height allowing them to tower over the everyone else.

"At ease, Spartans." The general stated and they quickly approach him and he watched the famed Master Chief intently examine the battle map. "I guess I have you to thank for giving us more time."

There was no response to that but the green armored Spartan looked towards the General, the light blue, almost white armored Spartan stared with equal impassiveness. After an awkward moment the general continued. "I am assuming you are here for Charlie?"

At the mention of his name, an AI with a rugged scientist look to him that looked to be of Asian origin materialized on the holographic table. Both Spartans looked towards the AI.

"Hey-o." He gave a small wave. John determined that he was much too jovial for him to be this comfortable in a combat zone. Then again, military-grade AIs were in the natural element when in the heat of combat. Aria also, now that he thought about it.

It was cold professionalism from her throughout the deployment and she had taken his orders without hesitation. He hovered his hand out over the holotable and an orange electric spark jumped from his palm and into the mainframe of the defense forces. She materialized on the table as well.

"Bring us up to speed." John merely said and Aria allowed herself a soft smile. She was getting used to this already.

-()-

Spectre Saren Arterius groaned awake. He fluttered his eyes open but shut them tightly when rain came searing into them.

He rolled onto his chest and pushed himself up.

Rain was pouring and his ship was in ruins. The engines were as good as gone and while the hull sustained little damage, most of the front end of the ship was destroyed. He was surprised to find himself still alive.

"Ah you are awake!" _Damn it!_ Saren turned with a nod to the Salarian. "We have set up in the hold. We have already transmitted off world to an awaiting Turian Patrol Fleet they are en route to pick us up."

 _That's not good._ Saren thought. "Who's decision was this?"

"Gemnor did." The Salarian gestured towards the damaged cargo bay, where two other Salarians waited.

He approached the group of Salarians. He _really_ didn't like the species but hated the STG as they always were shifty and shady in their dealings and always getting in the way of his own. "Is this patrol fleet planning on taking on the pirate fleet?" Saren questioned.

"I don't know." Gemnor's simple response was. "However, we have to wait until they arrive."

Saren growled as he attempted to dry himself of the heavy rain. The migraine he received from the crash was still there.

"Maybe we can gather some sam-" A low hum pierced the roaring rain as they all looked up to the source. A matte black dropship, definitely not one of theirs or of Batarian origin, circled around the crash site like a bird of prey. Saren concluded that they wouldn't be seen with dense fog.

But why were the unknowns here? Surely the personnel would be better suited to defending against the colony.

Were they running? But that wouldn't explain why they were hovering around the crash site searching for something.

Then the horrible realization dawned on him. They weren't running or scouting.

They were investigating.

That meant the Batarians were being pushed back.

That meant these unknowns received reinforcements.

That meant that they were looking for answers. But why them? It dawned on Saren, and considering the looks on the STG team they reached the same conclusion as well, they were about to become Prisoners of War.

Because how could a hardened Turian biotic and five relatively unarmored Salarians stack up against the three heavily armored and armed beings, that easily towered over Krogan, who jumped from the air to the ground, a height that was easily a hundred meters, and was not another hundred meters away.

Those gold visors would forever be etched into his memory.

-()-

 _The D88-VTOLTC or better known as the 'Pelican' by the boys in uniform, is the workhorse of the UNSC armed forces. The standard variant is roughly forty meters in length and eleven meters in height. With medium armor plating and light energy shielding, it is able to take on a multitude of roles._

 _Gunship roles however are more prominent with the AV34-VTOLG or 'Harrier' since they are more maneuverable and can carry heavier rail-guns. These are the standard attack gunship used by airmen._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (D88-VOTLTC) and (AV34-VTOLG)._

-()-

 _ **And there you have it! Another chapter into the Battle of Shanxi!**_

 _ **I would love to hear you thoughts on how I portrayed Shepard. Don't worry I have much more planned for her.**_

 _ **Until Next Time!**_


	5. V

_**(Sorry for the delay and Read AN at bottom)**_

 _ **Enjoy!**_

-()-

 _In the 26th Century the average un-augmented human could live close to a hundred and fifty years._

 _The average UNSC marine receives augmentations that boost immune system and strength, they work similar to steroids without all the harmful side effects. It's been commonly documented of retired UNSC marines reaching the age of hundred and eighty to two hundred._

 _The average Orbital Drop Shock Trooper also receives further augmentation. Slight boosts to strength to survive to rigors of orbital drop and even more strenuous environments. While most ODSTs do die in the line of combat, those that retire have been documented to live past the age of two hundred._

 _The Spartans however are a unique case. The fours are projected to live well into their third century while Threes are theorized to reach their fourth century with little difficulty. The Twos will probably outlive us all and live well into sixth even seventh century. Perhaps even longer if the Spartan Protocol will still be in effect after this is all over._

 _I certainly have no plans of dying any time soon._

 _I introduce the bio-nanites to both military personnel and civilians as further research from recovered Forerunner data for cures into life-threatening ailments such as cancer, sickle-cell disease and Alzheimer's. These cures are easily affordable and my theories on how long the average human will live is well into their third century, further research has revealed that we may be on the verge of indefinite lifespans._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (Medical Advances) to High Command and Security Council._

-()-

Admiral Steven Hackett watched the battle map on his holo table closely. The 21st Fleet was as tight as it can be.

Both the _Zodiac-Class_ and their heavier sisters of the _Hood-Class_ grouped in four dozen groups of six. The wolf packs being led by the _Hood-Class_ while a pair of the _Zodiacs_ flanked each _Hood._

 _Dominion-Class_ Light destroyers escorted their heavier brethren of the _Calamity-Class._ There were well over forty of the Heavy Destroyers while there was twice as many Light Destroyers, flanking each _Calamity_ in pairs, mirroring their smaller cousins.

After them were twenty-five _Gemini-Class_ Heavy Battlecruisers who were scattered across the entire fleet to help maintain fleet cohesion. But the real magnificence of the fleet were the ships that were closest to the center.

Two _Illyrian-Class_ Light Carriers as well as the six _Bastion-Class_ Super Heavy Cruisers that surrounded the carriers and would be sponging up the damage so that the carriers could deploy their forces to reinforce the ground garrison and assist repelling the invading ground forces. Also circling the six heavy cruisers were twice as many light cruisers that would also be escorting the carriers were the _Endurance-Class_ Light Cruisers.

But the pride of the fleet was the massive hulking behemoth of fifteen kilometers of pure and perfect naval firepower and prowess was the _UNSC Hyperion_ of the Titan-Class. Flanking the command-and-control ship was the two carriers, surrounding those were the heavy and light cruisers.

Around the cruisers were the destroyers and frigates spread throughout about one hundred kilometers of space (spitting distance in space terms) and strategically tossed into the mix were the heavy battlecruisers who were also protecting an Apollo-Class Repair/Medical ship and also a Vulcan-Class Dry Cargo Manufacturing ship as well.

The 21st Fleet, despite what many would believe, was actually a misnomer.

The 21st Fleet is only dubbed such when several of Humanity's fleets would come together on the last month of the UNSC standard year and conduct live-fire training scenarios of a Flood invasion or when deploying on a Flood-infested world above Reach.

So it was mere coincidence and luck that four hundred and sixty-six ships filled to the brim with Humanity's soldiers had been combat ready when they were needed.

There were well over four hundred thousand battle-hardened marines ready to and itching for a fight and two battalions of gung-ho ODSTs prepared to rain hell upon those who trespassed against Humanity and, even Hackett didn't know with absolute certainty of the numbers, a platoon of _Spartan-IVs_ and, if ONI rumors were to be believed, all of the famed Spartan-IIs who had been thought dead, including The Master Chief, had already been deployed.

Hackett was chosen to lead the fleet to liberate Shanxi due to his experience in the Human-Flood War. Like many of the other high-ranking commanders within the 21st, he had proven himself when leading several operations against the Flood.

The most famous one was known as _The Liberation of Reach_ where he and, at the time, Lieutenant Commander Thomas Lasky led a small strike force to retake the military stronghold.

The ships were both extremely different and the same from their Human-Flood War counterparts. Instead of the ship's bridge being on the exterior of the ship, or on what is perceived to be the top of the warship **(1)**. Now the command-and-control were located in the bowels of every warship minus the outdated _Preston-Classes_ that were used for command ships at orbital defense forces and the small taskforces for show-of-the-flag runs.

Thousands of microscopic sensors and vid-cams projected the outside space in a surrounding viewing screen. How Research and Development came up with this idea and put it into fruition was beyond him. But one thing was for sure, it was nice not having to worry about a stray missile or MAC round.

He shook his head from his thoughts. He needed to focus on the task at hand but he knew if he could scrape a victory against a force that outnumbered his own almost a hundred to one with outdated ships then he could definitely scoop one up with hundreds of advanced warships designed for the sole purpose of causing whoever was at the other end of the barrel to lie dead.

"Status report." He commanded. "All aircraft and every single ground element we have available is to be ready to depart at a moment's notice."

"All ships are green and good to go. The carriers' complements are prepped and ready as well." A bridge officer shouted back as he swiped at his console. Numerous reports and data flooded the screen as the officer continued with utmost ease at directing the flood of information.

Another, female officer continued. "Strike Groups are well within expected destination plots and we will be surrounding the entire system." The stylus she was using dragged a piece of information from a holoboard and onto a datapad, which she handed a nearby officer. "The Eighty-Third Fleet and Thirty-Ninth Fleet are two days out while the Sixty-Sixth Heavy Fleet is a week out."

"Excellent." Hackett stated in response. A light orange hologram appeared on the edge of his armrest.

"We will be exiting in approximately fifteen minutes and twenty seconds, Fleet Admiral." The hologram announced as he slightly flicked his cuffed wrist and a timer appeared, counting down the departure from slipspace. The AI's avatar was portrayed as a butler from the twentieth century , in pristine clothes complete with the tail flap.

"Make final preparations. Time to rain the pain." Hackett stated poetically.

-()-

Admiral Udasin Dapporok looked onto the battle map from the luxury of his command chair and promptly snarled in disgust.

The initial invasion, for all intents and purposes, was a success. Granted, with their anti-orbital guns in place it was taking a lot longer than usual but that didn't stop the ambition and pride of the Batarian captains as quite a few attempted to get close enough to bombard the city to only end up with their ships being reduced to scrap or heavily damaged.

The ground forces, after gathering and preparing, proceeded to attack the city. The Batarians encountered heavy resistance but after an entire day, the ground forces made footholds into the city. After that the defenders knew that it was only a matter of time before the city fell and so they consolidated their forces in the center, becoming almost a nigh-impenetrable fortress.

But even the most impenetrable fortresses have a weakness.

Numbers were on the Batarians' side and after several heavy pushes, they were about to win the day.

And then the _Demons_ came.

The city was, from orbital scans, a couple hundred square kilometers in land area. The Batarian invasion force had conquered all of but the twelve square kilometers at the center and the most urban of the areas. And as soon as those _Demons_ came, large swaths of the city was lost in a chaotic and uncoordinated retreat as the defender's reinforcements went on the offensive. Thirty individual, most likely some sort advanced experimental robotic troops forcing over two thousand blood-thirsty pirates and a couple of armor columns into a hasty retreat.

He slammed his hand into his armrest and silently winced at the pain the action caused.

"Stop the retreat this instant!" He barked at the nearest officer.

"Admiral, the comms are being jammed. I can't get anything through to the general groundside. Something is jamming us."

The Admiral bared his teeth and was about to shout another order and give the officer a tongue lashing for delivering bad news when another officer shouted out, "Uh, sir there are a couple hundred radiation spikes occurring around two hundred thousand kilometers away."

"What do you mean?" He quickly whipped his head towards the reporting officer.

"I don't know sir, I mean, there was nothing there but now radiation is off the charts!" He responded quickly as he shrank away from the Admiral. He looked back at the console that beeped once than began beeping rapidly and, if the Dapporok didn't know any better, blanched. "Multiple unknown contacts coming out of...portals?"

"What? Show me!" He barked out.

"Pu-putting it up on the display." The wilting officer stuttered.

What the Admiral saw next made his blood run cold. "What...what are the numbers?"

"Two hundred and thirty seven and rising."

After a few more moments, the last of the ships exited the portals revealing extremely large behemoths headed straight towards them. "Sir," The communication officer began. "I'm receiving a transmission. Audio only." He eyed the counter of ships with extreme anxiety. "468 warships..." He muttered under his breath.

"Is our translation software working adequately now? If it is patch it through." The Admiral slowly said. The general groundside had sent a couple data packets containing the translation software and had just recently got installed.

The message was clear, _"To the enemies of the UNSC. This is Fleet Admiral Steven Hackett of 21st Fleet. You are trespassing on UNSC restricted space and are invading a UEG colony, a clear act of war. You are hereby ordered to power down your warships and prepare for boarding. Failure to comply will result in the immediate destruction of this fleet. That is all, Hackett out."_

"Get us out of here!"The Admiral all but shouted. Apparently the transmission was fleet-wide as nearly every single ship was already speeding towards the Relay.

"But the invasion force!" Someone yelled over the chaos that erupted on the bridge.

"It's either us or them!" He barked back to whoever questioned the order."Move the ship now!"

There was so much chaos occurring that no one noticed a portal open above them.

And as a four and half kilometer behemoth warship exited from the realms of Slipspace, several pale blue lights came to life and the last the Admiral saw was the light engulfing the bridge.

And then his world became darkness.

-()-

Admiral Hackett watched the massacre with a frown from his seat in the command chair.

All things considering, he really had expected more of a fight from the fleeing ships. Even in the farthest part of his mind, he did not think that they would simply power down their ships and be detained and/or executed willing but he had expected them to stay and fight.

But apparently this was going to be easier than expected. Now the UNSC had space superiority.

"Proceed with ground operations. I want a blockade set up around the relay and frigates on station to provide orbital fire support."

"Aye, Admiral."The comms officers and AI responded.

Hackett watched the surrounding vid screens as the _Illyrian-Class_ Light Carriers moved into position above the planet and next to the orbital elevator.

He always loved watching any type of carrier open their numerous hangers and bay doors and watch the ensuing controlled chaos as hundreds if not thousands of Pelican dropships and _Condor_ Assault Barges, filled to the brim with marines, equipment and vehicles, flooding towards the planet.

The carrier that went towards the orbital elevator however actually fired dozens of insertion pods into the station, deploying ODSTs to retake the station.

"Get me in contact with General Williams."

"Aye, sir."

In a few moments, the General materialized on the holo-map. _"Fleet Admiral Hackett."_ He saluted.

"General Williams." He returned the salute.

 _"Appreciate the assist. You showed up a little late to the party, however."_

"How so?" The Admiral questioned but he had a feeling that he already knew.

 _"See for yourself."_ The general gestured to his side and another figure materialized next to the general. Now General Williams was no short man by any means, standing at around six foot two. But the armored figure stood at least a foot taller than him.

 _The Master Chief!_ The Admiral thought with awe but also a slight hint of distaste. While true he admired the Spartan Program and that it saved Humanity, he was just one of many that figured the legendary heroes of Humanity to be dead. It didn't sit well with him that they were often used as ONI attack dogs.

The famed Spartan saluted. _"Sir. I have several Spartans on standby awaiting further orders. There is a hostile forward operation base fifty clicks west of the city. We have also located a high-value target there as well."_

It was rather clear what the Spartan was asking or rather saying, _I am sending Spartans to capture the HVT and then you can pummel the base._

"I have standing orders from High Command not to accept any prisoners." Admiral Hackett stated and he really did, straight from Fleet Admiral Lasky, himself.

 _"My orders come from Admiral Osman."_ The Master Chief said simply. _"The capture of VIPs will be vitally important in the war."_

The general didn't say anything and neither did Hackett. Hackett orders conflicted with the Spartan's but he figured that there wasn't much that could be said to the legend before him to change his mind or he'd become like Del Rio, if he opposed the Chief. His career ruined, reputation tarnished and a laughing stock.

"You have until 0500 hours then the base is going sky-high." The clear distaste of accepting any orders of ONI origin being heard in his voice.

 _"Understood."_ The Spartan's hologram saluted and winked off.

 _"You do realize that you just got on ONI's radar for trying to challenge Admiral Osman."_ The general stated after a moment.

"I do. But I am also under orders from High Command not to accept any form of surrender and, as of right now, you are too and everyone else under your command. High Command made it clear that no mercy is to be had within the UNSC." Hackett neglected to mention that this war was to also make everyone more experienced and thus the entire weight of the United Nations Space Command was going to be brought to bear.

After a hundred years of peace with the occasional pirate raid or Promethean resistance, the UNSC was eager to see how they stacked against another faction.

 _"I would agree but without them, you would be attacking an alien stronghold, right now and there would've been more casualties."_

"I've done it once. My men and I can do it again." Hackett responded resolutely, it wasn't arrogance, only confidence. It wasn't from luck that he got the commission for the _UNSC Hyperion_ and when a Colossal Class shows up, only the best come along for the ride.

 _"For once, I hope you are right, old friend."_ The general sighed. _"I have a clean-up to coordinate. Mind sending a carrier down to help with the civilians? I have a feeling this is just getting started and they should be evacuated as soon as possible."_

"I'll send the _Dalmatia_ down as soon as possible, have them ready to board. We don't want them to witness a MAC in-atmosphere."

 _"I see you are pulling all the stops. Consider it done. Now if you'll excuse me."_ The general saluted and his hologram winked off.

-()-

John waited at the mouth of the pelican as the few Spartans that were closer to the _Mastodon_ perimeter boarded.

He and Kelly had barely been in combat so their ammunition counters were still full. Fred was currently tinkering with his rifle while sitting at the entrance with his legs outstretched on the dirt, making slight adjustments to his weapon.

Linda was also calibrating her sniper rifle but was in a seat near the cockpit of the dropship. She looked up at John and gave an extremely subtle nod, unnoticeable to anyone but Spartan-IIs. It spoke volumes about what had occurred. _Aliens were easily dealt with._

Jorge and Aaron were the most battered of the Spartans. It looked like some heavy munitions was actually used against the two but even with those it didn't look like they were sporting injuries that alluded to armor being used against them. They were quietly talking to each other about how to go about the best way to approach the mission given they were the distraction.

A holographic map, complete with topographical information was being projected from the single display emitter in the dropship. There was several marks on the map highlighting points of interest.

Linda would be providing sniper cover while Kelly, being the fastest was to grab the HVT and escort him back. John would be nearby with Fred to also provide cover fire for Kelly as soon as she exited the base. The plan was to be out of the base a minute before the counter reached zero so that they would have ample amount of time to be away from the MAC blast, courtesy of the UNSC Navy.

And currently, he was wondering why the Fleet Admiral hadn't informed him of the method in which the Batarians were going to be disposed of. It wasn't that he was waiting to complete the operation in the last minute, it was the principle that mattered.

An orbital strike of that magnitude, and he needed to be informed and if Aria wasn't listening in on the conversation between the General and the Fleet Admiral then they wouldn't have known until the last possible moment and possibly put one of his Spartan's lives at risk. He knew that Aria would have already informed Admiral Osman of the development in a highly encrypted package sent via the _Normandy._

"So is it just us?" Jorge asked, his voice thick and heavy, attesting to his Hungarian heritage. Aaron looked over as well.

"Gray Team is transporting VIPs to the _Normandy._ Omega Team and Alpha Team are assisting in rooting out any stragglers. Straight black op with no conventional reinforcements."

Jorge nodded and the six Spartans gathered around the holographic map.

"Let's hear it." Fred said as he slung his rifle across his back. Aria appeared on the holographic display, her orange form flickering slightly as she did.

 _"Our target is one General Savile Drafsokan, a six foot Batarian male of pale green complexion. Note the two scars that run diagonally across his face. He is holed up in the central building, here. The base itself has around three thousand hostile soldiers, around two hundred tanks, and several dozen gunships and anti-air batteries."_ She further highlighted other places of interest.

Jorge gestured to Aaron to begin and he highlighted a point of interest, a hill that had dense forestry but gave a amazing view of the entire base. "Found a spot for Linda, she can figure out the details when we land there." His voice was deep but accent-less. He wasn't deployed on a single world long enough to develop one, like most Spartans. Jorge was the exception in that he was deployed with Noble Team most of the time and was on Reach for a couple years assisting with the preparations for the inevitable invasion.

He highlighted the east side and John noted it was one of the more heavily defended areas and Jorge continued.

"This will be our entry point. Should give you enough time and space to get in and get out from here." Jorge highlighted the entrance of the base and Aaron took the reins. "That's your entry point. Active camo should keep them busy and we will follow Kelly out."

John nodded. "Let's get to work." His clock read 0200 and he noted it was starting to get dark, the planet's night cycle on this side of the world was starting.

He switched to only comms to only communicate with Aria.

For a moment he didn't know what to say. John honestly didn't even know why he wanted to talk to her in the first place. "What is the Fleet Admiral's problem?"

It took a moment for her to appear on his HUD but she responded immediately. _"He seems to harbor a grudge against ONI. He wouldn't be the first one and he won't be the last."_

John conceded that point.

"Give me a rundown of Hackett."

 _"Born in New Buenos Aires in 2534, raised by a single mother who died in 2546 during a Flood invasion of the world. Placed in Corbulu Academy for Military Sciences which was then destroyed three years later after he graduated a year prior. After getting a commission at Earth as a Lieutenant, he assisted Rear Admiral Dolohov in repelling several Flood assaults within the Sol system. His ship later crash-landed in Africa several miles away from the Mombasa Command Bunker, where he led the survivors for two years before the counter-attack. Since then he has been in numerous engagements against the Flood and risen the ranks to Fleet Admiral, actually in charge of the 5th Fleet stationed in the Epsilon Eridani System."_

"I thought Lasky was in charge of the 5th Fleet which was stationed in Sol?"

"Lasky is now in charge of the First Fleet which is divided between both the Ark and Earth. A lot has changed since 2558."

He thought it over and knew that a hundred years was enough time to enact a lot of change. But considering he did spend those years in cryo-sleep then it would seem that it was only yesterday they went under.

"Right." He said. "Wheels up in five. Make final preparations."

-()-

 _As the classification name implies, the Apollo Class is a mobile repair yard and medical station. Almost always accompanied by a DCMSS, the Apollo Class, utilizing the materials from the manufacturing ships is able to efficiently field repair any ship._

 _Serious damages, however, and the ship will need a more specialized facility or if the situation calls for it, the ship will be cannibalized to provide for other ships. Other than extremely heavy armor and shields, the Apollo Class has no offensive armaments. Since it is also a mobile medical station, it can also support the needs for virtually any injury in the line of combat, provided they are not dead._

 _In circumference and based off the Ark in design, the Apollo-Class is around ten kilometers and, with a series of docking clamps and connection tubes, along with the Vulcan-Class is able to attach themselves together to make a mobile munitions factory, repair yard and medical station Combined with the Vulcan Class the station can be fifteen kilometers._

 _Concerning the Vulcan-Class, the UNSC employs at least one of these ships in every single combat-ready fleet. These ships provide the facilities and material required to make munitions, provisions and any equipment for the fleet and the accompanying ground forces._

 _Although, many of the larger classes of ships also have their own manufacturing capabilities, a single supply ship is able to provide for the entirety of the fleet easily and much more efficiently. They do not possess any armaments other than a point defense system and a bay similar to a ODST drop bay to quickly deploy supplies to ground forces. The hanger, however is large and has a contingent of aircraft, whose sole purpose is to defend the station._

 _-Dr. Catherine Halsey, Head of ONI Section III. Remarks on (Apollo-Class Mobile Repair/Medical Station) and (Vulcan-Class Dry Cargo Manufacturing Supply Station)._

 _ **!**_

 _ **Sorry for the extremely late update. I have been busy as of late and haven't had the time to write this as I had hoped I would have. That said, being the holidays, there is a chance the update may be delayed again or there may be several in succession, depending on how busy I am.**_

 _ **Do you guys want me to do a timeline really quic**_ _ **kly leading up to this event to assist those that are having trouble piecing together the history of this Halo Universe AU? If not, afterwards, will be ending the Shanxi Arc and then moving forward.**_

 _ **I also want to know whether you guys want me to make a compile a codex of sorts, or continue making journal entries at the beginning and end of each chapter. I can do either one. I am really going in-depth within this story and am doing a ton of work piecing everything together.**_

 _ **1) As you may have noticed that there was this bolded number. It's to help explain what I mean.**_

 _ **On top of a space ship is only what one perceives it to be. I got the idea from Ender's Game and frankly it made a lot of sense. In space there is no gravity, every direction is where one perceives it to be. There is no "North, South, East or West". A group of ships can come from anywhere be it the an enemy fleet's underbelly into the weakest point or from the "top" of a ship.**_

 _ **When down in the technicalities of it all, space combat, specifically knife-fighting ranges, is truly terrifying and chaotic. One moment a commander could be firing into the broadside of a cruiser and the next there is a destroyer bearing down from above with its prow pointed at the top deck.**_

 _ **To put into layman's terms, there is no "True" sense of direction when there is lack of gravity anything can come from anywhere and be whatever one perceives it to be.**_

 _ **Until Next Time!**_


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